


The Kraftur

by edna_blackadder



Category: Sarah Jane Adventures
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-17
Updated: 2015-12-17
Packaged: 2018-05-07 06:52:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5447249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/edna_blackadder/pseuds/edna_blackadder
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maria and Alan house-sit for Sarah Jane and Sky and wonder how many days it will be before alien activity picks up.  Turns out they should have been guessing in minutes.  Gita lends timely assistance, though she doesn't know it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Kraftur

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dbskyler](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dbskyler/gifts).



> Thanks to S for the beta.

‘It’s just so strange,’ said Maria, as Sarah Jane’s car zipped out of sight. ‘Looking over there and knowing it isn’t our home. All of a sudden I’m wondering which room Rani took, whether it’s the same as mine.’

‘Really now?’ asked her father incredulously. ‘We’ve just set up shop in the house that’s at the centre of alien activity in London, and that’s your take-away?’

Maria smiled. ‘I know, Dad. It’s just an interesting change of perspective, that’s all.’

‘It’s like you’ve graduated,’ said Alan wisely. ‘Come back to school, only now you’re the teacher.’

‘Next thing you know we’ll have aliens taking us travelling in space and time,’ said Maria. ‘We could be looking down on this house from outer space!’

‘Oh no. I have got some limits, Maria, and I’m not having my daughter disappearing off to another planet. Besides, what would I ever tell your mother?’

‘I’d just get them to take me a planet covered in designer shoes,’ said Maria conspiratorially, at which Alan stifled a laugh.

‘In all seriousness,’ he said, ‘I know Sarah Jane says it’s been quiet as a mouse for the last couple of weeks, but how long do you really expect that to hold up?’

‘Two days, at most,’ said Maria, a grin breaking out upon her face. ‘I’ve missed this, Dad. The Delaware Foundation is amazing, but there’s just something so wonderful about being back here. I just wish we could’ve spent more time with Sarah Jane. I had this strange idea that we’d manage to squeeze in just one adventure before she headed off. You and me and her and Clyde, saving the world together again.’

‘And Rani, and that Sky,’ Alan reminded her. ‘Speaking of whom, I’m guessing I wasn’t just imagining the lights on the car flickering when she greeted us.’

Maria grinned. ‘You definitely weren’t. You heard what Clyde called her, Sparky. Talking of Clyde, he and Rani should be back by now. That pizza place is all of five minutes away. You don’t think…’

‘Oh, don’t start,’ Alan grumbled, and just then, the door burst open, revealing Clyde, Rani, and Rani’s mother.

‘Pizza’s here, my darlings,’ said Gita Chandra excitedly, as Rani mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ over her shoulder. ‘Hello, Mr. Jackson, I’m sure you’ll remember me. Gita Chandra, my husband Haresh and I bought our house over the road from you all those years back. I run a flower shop now, Bloomin’ Lovely. I’m not sure if there’ll be anyone you’re racing to see while you’re back in town, but flowers always make a lovely gift!’ With that, Gita produced her card with a flourish, and Alan took it, a tad uncertainly.

‘Yes, thank you, Mrs Chandra,’ he said, with a bemused smile. ‘I remember you and your husband well, and I’ll keep that in mind.’

‘I must say, it’s wonderful that you’re still such good friends with Sarah,’ Gita continued, blissfully unaware the eye-rolling going on behind her. ‘I did offer to house-sit for her myself, you know, but she said she’d already asked you. Said that Maria wanted to see her mum during her break and that it timed out perfectly with her visit to Luke. How strange is that, schools in three different countries having the same time off?’

Maria grinned. ‘That is highly improbable, Mrs Chandra, but I guess that’s just the way the universe works.’

‘Would you like to stay and have some pizza with us, Gita?’ asked Alan. ‘There’s more than enough to go around, not least because that’s clearly one more than I ordered.’

Clyde shrugged. ‘You lot all insisted on veggies. What was I to do?’

‘Would I?’ Gita exclaimed, ignoring him. ‘Oh, absolutely, my darlings. Haresh has gone and tried to make mac and cheese again and it’s as dreadful as always. Rani, why don’t you and Clyde set the table, then?’

‘Sure, Mum,’ said Rani, smiling indulgently. She turned towards the kitchen, and Clyde moved to follow her. Gita closed the door behind them and started to make her way towards Maria and Alan, only to slip rather spectacularly on the rug, hitting her head on a table as she fell.

‘Mum!’ Rani gasped, tossing the pizza box she was carrying into Clyde’s arms. She immediately bent down to help her mother. ‘Mum, are you okay?’

Gita sat up, rubbing her head. ‘Oh, yes, I’m just fine, my darling. Goodness me, how terribly clumsy. If you’ll just give me a hand there—oh!’ Gita gasped as she attempted to stand up. ‘Oh dear, I think I’ve twisted my ankle. I knew I should have worn more sensible shoes, only come to think of it, I did! Ouch, that hurts!’

‘Let’s get you over to the couch, Mum,’ said Rani, and Maria hurried over to assist her, taking Gita’s other arm. As she did so, a vase fell forward, striking Rani in the back. Except that it hadn’t fallen, so much as it had sprung.

‘Ouch!’ Rani cried, and then she hurriedly whispered, ‘Did you see that?’

Maria nodded. ‘Stay with her; we’ll get upstairs,’ she whispered back. Together they helped Gita to sit down, and Alan attempted to arrange pillows for her—only for one of them to leap from the couch and attach itself to his face.

‘Dad!’ Maria yelped, as her father struggled to breathe. She hurried towards him and tried to pry the pillow away, and a catalogue on the coffee table hurled itself at the back of her head. Clyde set the pizzas down and ran towards them, and of their accord, both boxes launched themselves at him. Maria and Rani both tugged at the pillow and managed to free Alan, who fell backwards onto the floor, staring directly up at Sarah Jane’s ceiling light, which had begun to swing ominously.

‘Look out!’ he yelled, and the three of them just barely moved in time, as the light came crashing down.

‘It’s a ghost!’ Gita exclaimed. ‘Sarah’s got a ghost in her house!’

‘Right, the one thing even she won’t ever believe,’ Clyde grumbled, wiping pizza sauce from his face, and then there was a loud thud, as though something had slammed into the wall.

Maria turned to the window, and a tree branch promptly hurtled towards it. ‘It’s outside, too! What if it’s, um, a home invader?’

‘OK, now I know you’ve gone native,’ said Alan, but Maria shook her head.

‘No, I mean someone should take a look and see if they can spot anybody.’ She cast a meaningful glance first at Clyde, then at Rani, inclining her head slightly in Gita’s direction. To her surprise, Gita nodded.

‘Let’s go, Rani,’ she said, lifting herself gingerly to her feet before ducking a book that immediately came flying towards her. ‘We’ve got to warn your dad. If this thing is at Sarah’s, it could be at ours, too. We can try to catch a glimpse of it on our way.’

Rani nodded. ‘That’s a good idea, Mum.’ She led her mother towards the door, carefully dodging an attacking knickknack. As they slipped outside, the branch once again slammed into the window, this time more forcefully.

‘Right, attic, now!’ said Clyde as soon as they were gone, and he, Maria, and Alan raced up the stairs, pursued by a series of angry picture frames. ‘Mr Smith, we need you!’ he yelled, as something larger than a tree branch hit the window this time, terrifyingly audible from three floors above. ‘Things in the house are attacking us! And outside it!’

‘I am aware of that, Clyde,’ said Mr Smith irritably, and soon the three of them saw why: his rarely used defence cannons had come out, and K9 was also scurrying about, blasting attacking objects. ‘They are attacking K9 and myself as well. I would advise you not to come any closer, lest we hit you by accident.’

‘This unit’s calculations are always exact,’ said K9 primly, just before blasting a book out of the air. ‘Speak for yourself, Mr Smith.’

‘But what’s causing it?’ asked Maria. ‘Can you analyse it while you’re in defence mode?’

‘I am attempting to do so, Maria, but that may take some time,’ said Mr Smith between blasts. ‘This attack is the work of an alien energy being known as a Kraftur that has attached itself to this house.’

‘Oy, quit showing off and tell us what it is,’ said Clyde, ducking a USB computer mouse.

‘Analysis indicates Kraftur has been among us for six months now,’ said K9, with a trace of smugness.

Mr Smith made a cough-like sound in annoyance, then said, ‘Kraftur are non-violent by nature. Their homeworld has long been destroyed, and they seek only a sense of security. They look for places where they feel safe, and then they become one with those surroundings.’

‘So they’re, what, parasites?’ asked Clyde. ‘Sarah Jane’s house has alien termites, is that what you’re saying?’

‘Not exactly, Clyde. The Kraftur has taken possession of this house much in the same manner that a parasite would its host, but as a general rule they mean no harm. That would be why we never detected its presence before.’

‘Then why’s it attacking now?’ asked Maria. ‘Could it feel threatened because Sarah Jane’s gone?’

‘Insufficient data, Mistress Maria,’ said K9.

‘Not for me, it isn’t,’ said Mr Smith smugly. ‘Although this is only speculation, it is not unheard of for Kraftur to become attached to the inhabitants of the environments in which they live, which would suggest that you are correct.’

‘So, what, it thinks Sarah Jane is its mother, and it’s throwing a tantrum because she’s gone away?’ asked Alan incredulously.

‘Oh, Luke’ll love that,’ said Clyde. ‘Guess what, Lukey boy, you and Sparky have another alien sibling, and he—she?—it’s very needy!’

‘As ridiculous as it may seem, Clyde, I am inclined to favour Mr Jackson’s explanation,’ said Mr Smith, before blasting an oncoming gadget that was definitely not of this world.

‘But wait,’ said Maria. ‘Sarah Jane’s not some recluse. How come it hasn’t been throwing fits every time she’s gone out shopping for the last six months?’

‘Think about it, Maria,’ said Alan, suddenly serious. ‘Think back to your mum and me. You know the difference between when somebody’s just popped round the shops and when you’re really worried they won’t come back. The Kraftur must not understand what a holiday is. It’s afraid Sarah Jane and Sky have gone away for good.’

‘So how do we convince it otherwise?’ asked Maria. ‘We’ve got to find a way to make it trust us—look out!’ Three pieces of possibly unearthly had aimed themselves at their heads, an K9 dutifully blasted them, but to no effect, other than to char the attic wall. Maria ducked and squeezed her eyes shut—but the expected blow did not come. Instead, the rocks hit the floor with a thud, and suddenly the house went quiet.

‘What’s going on?’ she asked after a moment. ‘Why’s it stopped?’

‘Detecting highly concentrated Kraftur presence in the garden, Mistress Maria,’ said K9.

‘In the garden—but that’s where Rani and her mum are!’ Clyde hurried to the window, and then, to Maria’s surprise, he laughed. ‘You’ll never believe this. That thing attacked them with a watering can. It’s hovering in mid-air, and Mrs Chandra’s talking to Sarah Jane’s plants.’

‘And the Kraftur is listening to her,’ said Alan. ‘Mr Smith, is there any way you could let us hear them?’

‘I shall endeavour to get close enough to record Mrs Chandra’s speech,’ said K9. ‘I can then relay this information to Mr Smith instantaneously. Activating hover mode.’

Gliding downward with the innate grace of a well-designed machine, K9 disappeared, and Maria, Alan, and Clyde looked at each other, exchanging tense glances. Within moments, words began to appear on Mr Smith’s screen: NOW LOOK, DARLING, IT’S ALL VERY WELL TO BE HAUNTING HOUSES AND WHATEVER ELSE IT IS YOU GHOSTS DO, BUT WHATEVER IT IS YOU’RE WORRIED ABOUT, I CAN’T HAVE YOU TAKING IT OUT ON SARAH’S BEGONIAS. I’LL HAVE YOU KNOW SHE’S VERY PROUD OF THOSE. MUM, WE’VE GOT TO GET AWAY! JUST A MOMENT, RANI, I THINK I’M GETTING THROUGH TO IT! WHO WOULD HAVE EVER THOUGHT YOU’D HAVE ONLY TO TALK TO AN ANGRY GHOST. WELL LOOK, NOW I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION, I REALLY MUST INSIST YOU PUT THAT CAN RIGHT BACK WHERE YOU FOUND IT. OVERWATERING IS THE DEATH OF BEGONIAS. I’VE TOLD MRS PHILLIPS UP THE ROAD SO MANY TIMES, BUT WILL SHE LISTEN—MUM! WE’VE GOT WARN DAD!

‘I don’t understand,’ said Clyde. ‘It’s got no qualms about inflicting grievous bodily harm on us, but it balks at hurting Sarah Jane’s plants?’

‘I don’t think it’s really interested in what she’s saying,’ said Maria. ‘It might not even understand. I mean, Sarah Jane and Sky must have talked about going to see Luke loads of times before they left, but obviously the Kraftur didn’t get the message. But Mr Smith said that what it wants is to know that it’s safe. Well, Mrs Chandra defended the plants. She kept them safe. That must have got it to trust her. So we’ve got to get it to trust us. We’ve got to show it that we can keep it safe.’

‘Right,’ said Clyde quietly. ‘Let me have a go. I think I just might be able to get through to it.’ He turned towards the stairs.

‘Wait,’ said Maria. ‘Mr Smith, in case I’m right and it doesn’t really understand words, can you translate what Clyde says into the language of the Kraftur’s homeworld?’

‘What you are actually asking me to do is interpret, Maria, but yes, I can. Kraftur cannot speak, but they should be able to understand the language that was spoken on their planet before its absorption by the Ylur supernova.’

‘All right then. Wish me luck. KRAFTUR!’ Clyde bellowed. ‘My name is Clyde Langer, and I know how you feel.’ The railing broke away from the wall and aimed itself at Clyde, but K9 dutifully blasted it away as Mr Smith made several strange noises, with the name ‘Clyde Langer’ between them.

At that, the house fell silent, and several flying objects dropped to the floor. Clyde cleared his throat and continued. ‘I know you’re scared. My dad walked out on me when I was a kid. I’ll never forget what that was like. At first I couldn’t get my head around it. I convinced myself he’d come back any minute, and then when I realised it wasn’t going to happen, it was like I’d been cut open. All of a sudden I had no dad. It was as if he’d died, only he didn’t die. He just left us. And I blamed my mum, like you’re blaming us now. You think we drove Sarah Jane and Sky away, and maybe you think we’re gonna leave too and you’ll be all alone in the universe. Is that right?’

Mr Smith beeped, whirred, and even made a noise that sounded like a squawk. After a pause, he said, ‘It cannot answer you, Clyde, but I do believe it is comprehending what you have to say. For all our sakes, please continue.’

‘Okay,’ said Clyde. ‘I’m gonna take that as a yes. Well, I had it wrong, Kraftur, and so do you. It wasn’t my mum’s fault my dad had gone. He was just a rubbish dad, and my mum’s amazing. She loves me, and she’d never abandon me like he did. Sarah Jane, she’s like my mum. She and Sky are coming back, I promise. They’re just away visiting Luke, a family member you didn’t know you had. And you know what else? Sarah Jane only didn’t say goodbye to you because she didn’t know you were there. When she comes back, and we tell her about you, she’ll make you feel safer and more welcome than you could ever imagine. She and Sky will start communicating with you properly, just wait and see. You’re living with a woman who saves the world from an attic in Ealing. C’mon, Kraftur, have a little faith!’

Mr Smith beeped, whirred, and squawked Clyde’s words into the Ylur language, and then a series of strange characters appeared on his screen. ‘The Kraftur is using my touchscreen function to ask a question. Sight translation: How do I know that I will be safe with you?’

Clyde laughed. ‘Wow, for a life form that can take over an entire house, you’re not the brightest, are you? You really think Sarah Jane would leave this place defenceless? You’ve got Maria and Mr Jackson. They used to help Sarah Jane and Luke and me until they moved to America, and now they hide aliens from the government. They work with this super-secret organisation called the Delaware Foundation that was founded way back by somebody else who knew the Doctor. You know, the Doctor, Sarah Jane’s friend who taught her all about aliens? Maria, didn’t you say they protect aliens who need help? Like an intergalactic shelter?’

Maria nodded. ‘Well, they’re also a research institution, and it would be fair to say you don’t want to upset them, but as long as you come in peace, then that’s what they’ll give you. They’ve housed alien refugees from all over the galaxy because they believe everyone deserves a chance to have a happy, fulfilling life. Believe me, I’ve learned a lot about keeping aliens safe.’

‘That’s right,’ said Clyde proudly, albeit with a hint of envy. ‘Maria doesn’t come back to Bannerman Road much because she and her dad are busy keeping other aliens safe. And Rani, she’s just brilliant. She helps Sarah Jane and Sky and me take care of aliens all the time, and she’s taking care of her mum right now. And then there’s…well, then there’s me.’

Mr Smith beeped, whirred, and squawked. There was a moment’s silence, and then Clyde reached outward, feeling the air in front of him. ‘It’s suddenly really warm over here,’ he said, as if in wonder. ‘I think…I think it’s hugging me.’

Maria, too, felt a sudden warmth around her. ‘And me!’ she exclaimed. ‘Dad?’

Alan nodded. ‘I feel it too.’

Clyde grinned. ‘So we’re cool?’ he asked, and Mr Smith squawked an interpretation.

‘The Kraftur is using my touchscreen function to respond to you,’ said Mr Smith. ‘Sight translation: We are cool.’

‘Great,’ said Clyde. ‘Let’s go check on Rani and her mum, and if either of you have any brilliant cover stories, let me know.’

‘Two days,’ said Alan, shaking his head. ‘Two minutes, more like.’

Maria smiled. ‘Welcome back to Bannerman Road.’

****

One Week Later

‘Well?’ asked Sarah Jane. ‘Did anything exciting happen while we were away?’

‘Ghosts!’ Gita exclaimed, before Maria, Clyde, Rani, and Alan could so much as roll their eyes. ‘Sarah, you’ve got a ghost in your house!’

Sarah Jane pursed her lips, suppressing irritation. ‘Ghosts do not exist, Gita.’

‘I’m not sure,’ said Sky thoughtfully. ‘Something feels…different.’

‘It’s true,’ said Clyde, grinning entirely too widely. ‘Mrs Chandra saved your begonias from a very _crafty_ ghost.’

‘I’ve never seen anything like it,’ said Alan. ‘You might even say it was out of this world.’

‘Come on,’ said Maria, suppressing a laugh. ‘I’ll help you with your suitcases.’ She grabbed one by the handle, held the door for Sarah Jane and followed her inside, then whispered, ‘You’ve got a Kraftur. It missed you.’

‘I see,’ said Sarah Jane. ‘I wonder when it could have arrived. It didn’t hurt anyone, did it?’

Maria shrugged. ‘It tried, but we stopped it in time. You should have seen Clyde; he was incredible.’

‘I’ve no doubt of that,’ said Sarah Jane proudly. ‘Nor have I any doubt that you and your father were, as well.’

‘We did our best,’ said Maria modestly. ‘The thing is, I kind of understood how it felt. Over at the Delaware Foundation, they’ve got resources that you and Luke and Clyde and I could’ve only dreamt of, but that’s not what I think of when I need to feel safe. I still think of you, saving the world from your attic. That’s how I sleep at night.’

Sarah Jane smiled. ‘And I think of you, and your father, bringing your essential humanity to a place like that. I’m so proud of you, Maria, and of Clyde, and Rani, and how much you’ve all learned. For a long time, I was afraid to go away anywhere lest catastrophe strike in my absence, but I’ve got to tell you that this time, I wasn’t worried for a second.’

Maria smiled back, and the two embraced in a one-armed hug. ‘Sorry we got Mrs Chandra believing in ghosts.’

Sarah Jane laughed. ‘Nobody’s perfect, Maria. Not even you lot.’


End file.
